When Red Bluff residents bicycle in a stunning landscape, they enjoy everything nature offers. The last thing they want to think about is being in an accident. However, traffic collisions happen daily, which can cause severe injuries to a bicycle rider.

Because bicyclists are unprotected, their injuries are generally worse than passenger vehicle occupants. When this occurs, cyclists may be unable to work or care for themselves, putting themselves at a financial disadvantage. Many turn to a bicycle accident attorney in Red Bluff to recover the compensation they need.

A bicycle accident attorney can help injured riders survive the high medical expenses and lost time from work they face. At AutoAccident.com, we believe no one should have to pay financially and physically for the damages inflicted by a negligent party. That is one of the reasons we work so hard to obtain the compensation our clients deserve.

Insurance companies often try to settle an accident far below what it should be. They know the injured person is trying to pay their bills despite being out of work. The bicycle accident lawyers at our firm won’t stand for this trick and fight to protect your rights. Since 1982, we have successfully resolved many lawsuits against insurers and at-fault parties.

To learn more about what our firm can do for you, call us at (530) 392-9400 or (800) 404-5400 to schedule a free case review. You can also reach out to us online. We can set up a free consultation in our office or virtually to review your case, answer any questions you might have, and tell you what options are open to you to collect compensation. Should you decide to retain our firm to handle your case, you owe us nothing until it has been won.

The statistics for 2020, according to Advocacy Advance, are as follows:

• Approximately 675 bicyclists were killed in 2020, despite a slowdown in traffic that year.
• Twenty-five percent of all fatalities were caused by a hit-and-run driver.
• The number of rural and urban bicycle fatalities was more equal in 2020, unlike the ratio for 2019, where 78 percent of serious accidents occurred in urban areas.
• Major roads were dangerous for cyclists due to high traffic and a higher speed limit.
• May through August accounted for the largest number of fatalities.

There are many reasons why bicycle accidents occur. Let’s look at the most common ones:

• A motorist backing out of a driveway or leaLet’sa parking space often causes a bicycle accident. This happens mainly because the driver fails to check their rear-view mirror and physically turns around to look in addition to using their side mirrors.
• Exiting a side street can lead to a bicycle accident when the motorist fails to look for cyclists in their path. The driver often checks for other vehicles but fails to see a cyclist. A bicycle accident attorney in Red Bluff can protect the cyclist’s right to be treated like everyone sharing the road.
• A motorist turning right in an intersection often checks for cars approaching on their left. However, not everyone checks to see if a cyclist is in the bicycle lane beside them.
• Bicyclists often walk their bikes through the crosswalk. As with pedestrians, a motorist driving through the crossing might not see them until too late.
• Motorists who park parallel to the road and open their street-side door without looking can cause a dooring accident. Usually, a bicyclist cannot stop in time to avoid hitting the door. Occasionally, the cyclist may swerve out of the way only to be hit by traffic in the adjacent lane.
• Drunk and distracted drivers can hit bicyclists in the rear, causing them to be thrown from their bikes. This results in serious injuries or fatalities.
• The Three-Foot Law was designed to keep motorists safe from cyclists. However, many drivers disregard this rule and cause accidents.

Due to their lack of protection when involved in a collision, those who suffer a bicycle accident often have severe injuries and lose time at work. Areas where compensation can be recovered following an accident include the following:

• All of your medical expenses that resulted from your accident are recoverable. This includes the ambulance fee and hospitalization, covering testing, surgeries, prescription medications, doctors’ fees, and rehabilitation. If your accident injury is expected to continue, those costs will be factored into the settlement by your doctor.
• Wages lost because of the injured person’s inability to work can be recovered. Recovery includes any regular bonuses, pension and insurance benefits, tips, and other perks from the job. If the injured bicyclist returns to work at a lower-paying job because they can no longer perform their previous duties, the difference in pay is factored in. If the rider becomes permanently disabled due to the accident injury, the wages and bonuses can be collected up to retirement age. In addition, if the bicycle rider is self-employed, tax returns, receipts, and other data can be used to establish their income.
• Compensation for your physical pain and suffering is recoverable, although the amount depends on the extent of your injuries and the duration of the trauma. In addition, injured bicyclists can recover compensation for the psychological and emotional trauma caused by the accident. According to a study by the National Institute of Mental Health, more than 39 percent of those who survive a motor vehicle accident suffer post-traumatic stress disorder. PTSD causes feelings of extreme anxiety, depression, nightmares, sleeplessness, and helplessness. In cases where the injured party seeks professional help to combat their PTSD, those costs are recoverable.

When you suffer a severe injury in a bicycle accident caused by another person or entity, you don’t have to face it alone. At AutoAccident.com, our Red Bluff bicycle accident attorneys and staff treat you the way we would our own family members.

In the video that follows, attorney Ed Smith talks about how you need to find a lawyer you can trust who treats you like family:

When you’ve suffered a bicycle accident injury caused by the negligence of another person or entity, you may be entitled to file a claim to recover compensation. Please contact us for free, friendly advice at (530) 392-9400 or (800) 404-5400. See our Settlements and Verdicts.

^{Editor’s Note: updated [cha 9.8.23] Photo by Rudy and Peter Skitterians from Pixabay cd llo [cs 1113]}